OH NO, Not Jimbo!
Posted on 08/18/2005 7:35:14 AM PDT by CedarDave
A West Side man arrested on suspicion of shooting down a Bernalillo County Sheriff's Department helicopter apparently had the skills to do it— he is a former Marine Corps marksmanship instructor who served and was wounded in Afghanistan, court records show.
Jason Kerns, 29, who described himself to police as a "sniper" just after the chopper crashed on Aug. 6 on the edge of the Paradise Hills golf course, is a former lance corporal who was honorably discharged from the Marines in 2001. He served as a helicopter mechanic and range coach marksmanship instructor, according to an arrest warrant.
Kerns was arrested late Monday on charges of assault with intent to commit a violent felony upon a peace officer, criminal damage to property and tampering with evidence, according to an arrest warrant and criminal complaint.
Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White said federal charges could be filed as well.
<< snip >>
White said he could not comment on whether Kerns admitted to the allegations or if he has hired an attorney.
According to the arrest warrant:
Kerns approached deputies at the crash site, saying he saw the helicopter go down and had heard a gunshot immediately before the incident.
Kerns said his dog was upset and barking, so he went to the edge of his fence to see what was bothering it. He said he watched the helicopter circle to see why it was there. Kerns said he became annoyed by the sound because the helicopter was there for so long— about eight minutes.
<< snip >>
Kerns also said that he would be able to "make that shot" at that distance with "no problem" and that he "was a Marine sniper." Later he said "the helicopter was a great target."
(Excerpt) Read more at abqjournal.com ...
OH NO, Not Jimbo!
If marksman qualifies you as a sniper, then there are a lot of snipers around.
A coach school (3 weeks) for marksmanship does not a sniper make, at least in the Corps. The DM school is longer than that.
(sigh)
100 mph in a chevette?!?
yeah right - makes a much sense as the rest of this POS article - a helicopter mechanic Marine sniper! What a good cover for a movie by an ignorant liberal wannabe reporterette.
Marksmanship instructor is nowhere near going through sniper training (I washed out of sniper school in 1969 -wrong psychological profile) and I was also a marksmanship instructor. The latter being of no consequence to a person's ability or penchant for being a sniper. 'nuff said.
Read it again my friend. A Corvette will move a bit quicker than a chevette. I'm actually relieved that he used a 30.06 and not a .50 BMG. Sounds like the guy was a nutjob.
Yep, I am a sniper. WooHoo!
Typical clueless reporting. It is amazing how often, especially where it pertains to anything to do with firearms, deadlines trump research.
This disturbed young man was not a sniper. He did not have sniper skills. He had Marine marksmanship training and some equipment. Unless one attends a Marine Corps Division sniper school, or THE scout sniper school on Quantico, one is not a sniper. Sniper skills are many and precision marksmanship, though fundamental to the activity, is just one (land nav, stalking, tracking, land nav, physical fitness, land nav, CQC, E&E, and land nav are a few). Marine marksmanship training, even at the basic, bootcamp level, is still the best in the armed services. Good solid fundamentals are still taught over known-distance ranges. Sight alignment, sight picture, and trigger control work with ANY equipment one choses to acquire.
Granted this unhinged guy knocked down a chopper with a rifle shot (sounds like he was going for the pilot and didn't calculate his drop correctly.....hit in the leg?), and that sort of makes the tone of the article understandable. The lack of solid facts about what a Marine knows and what makes a sniper is not understandable.
Hope the kid gets some help and/or punishment.
Top sends
There is reality and then there is presstitutes' version of reality...
I appreciate your perspective on this story and correcting the misinterpretation of who this person is. Indeed a Marine marksman does not a sniper make.
The Chevette -- dyslexia does funny tricks! ;>)
CHEV(rolet) + (corv)ETTE = CHEVETTE
now, if you believe that excuse, let me tell you how great a president carter was ......
hehehe
That being said, Instructor billets came from many different areas. One of my DI's in boot camp was a Supply Sgt that had also done a stint on the Marine Corps Rifle Squad.
None of the articles I can find on him mention how long he was in. If he had been on the Range, was a Helo Mech, and had served in Afghanistan, then he had to have been in long enough to have picked up more rank than just Lance Corperal unless he was a complete dirtbag or had gotten busted for something.
Good to know that journalists check their facts... /S>
Ouch!! Love it!
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